Being Single
by nativefloridian
Summary: Once again, Heather says something that upends Beck's world. How he deals with it.


"Where's the major?"

"He went for a walk. Thataway." Captain Karin Dunne gestured "Said he needed to think, clear his head."

"In the woods? Alone? Is that even safe?"

"It's really not that dangerous. It's a fairly small area, between the camp and the town. And on the other side of the hill, you can almost forget you're next to an army camp. Lots of soldiers go there to 'get away'." She almost added that it was a convenient place for soldiers to meet civilian significant others, but stopped herself. "Why do you need to see him?"

"Just wanted to check up on him. He's been acting weird lately."

Dunne considered that. She hadn't noticed…oh wait, yes, she had. Beck _had_ been acting strange…when Heather was around. Interesting. On a whim, she decided to stir the pot.

"Well, if you want, you can go look for him. Just stay on the path and get out of the woods before dark."

Heather found him in a clearing just off the path on the other side of the hill, sitting on a rock, looking down on the town.

"Hey there."

"Wha-?"

"Relax. It's just me." She sat next to him on the rock. "Karin said you were up here."

"Ah." He said. "And you followed me because?"

"Wanted to talk."

"About what?" he asked, seemingly nonchalant.

"What's up with you."

"What do you mean?"

"You've been acting…different…the last few days. What's wrong?"

Beck sighed in surrender.

"You. Why do you always turn things on their heads?"

"Uh… okay." Heather replied, thinking back to the day he started acting differently. "Oh." That was a conversation that had turned sharply personal with little warning.

Beck snorted as she caught up with him. She'd forged on with typical bluntness, and forced him to consciously realize that he was no longer a married man. She'd tried to backtrack once she realized she'd stunned him into silence, but the damage was done. He had spent his entire adult life either in a serious relationship or married. He was still trying to wrap his head around the concept of being single, over a week later.

Or maybe it wasn't just being single.

His traitorous subconscious had persisted in putting his dream self in certain decidedly 'single' situations; bars, dances, etc. That alone was frightening; his dream self always bumbled through terrible pick-up lines and stepped on toes. But after the first two nights, Heather had started to show up in those bars and on those dance floors, and that was what had terrified him. He hadn't been able to look her straight in the eyes the last few days.

"Being single is weird." Was all that he said out loud.

Heather giggled.

"Must be nice." He gave her a funny look. "Most of us lament being single."

"Well, I haven't been single since junior year of high school, and I'm pretty sure the rules have changed – not that I was any good at them to begin with."

Her look of sympathy turned into incredulity at that last bit, and he explained.

"I was your typical shy teenage boy with a crush. Turned into a babbling idiot when I was around the girl I liked. It took forever to gather up the courage to walk up to her and ask her out, and, well…to this day, I don't know how she translated all those 'uhs' and 'ums' into 'would you go out on a date with me?'"

"But she said yes."

"Yeah. I was stunned. Thrilled beyond belief, but still surprised that she said yes."

"Why? She probably thought the babbling was sweet."

"If you say so. It's just – it's not like I was popular or anything."

"But I bet you were cute. Girls usually find shy, sweet and cute irresistible."

"Not even that. I was right at that awkward spurt stage – none of my clothes fit and I was clumsy."

"Hmph." Was all she said.

They sat there for a while, just staring down at the town.

"What do you think will happen to us after all this?" Heather said suddenly.

"Us?"

"As a nation. As a town. As people." She propped her head on her hands. "Don't you wonder how it will all turn out?"

He cocked his head and considered it for a moment.

"I hadn't really thought about it like that. I've been working more on the basis of what I _don't_ want us to become. I don't want us to be dead, I don't want people to be cruel to each other. I find what I don't want, and try to get rid of it. Though, now that I think about it, your way is better."

"Well, don't put yourself down. When you do find something, you take action. Lots of people don't."

He chuckled ruefully.

"Assuming I see it." He said, referencing Heather's actions during the revolt.

"True."

"So what do you want to happen?"

"Well, I guess I want America whole again. I want people to be free."

"And you?"

"I dunno. Probably stay in the Army until they no longer need me. You?"

"Probably stay in Jericho, go back to teaching. Hopefully find Mr. Right along the way."

He couldn't help himself; he had to ask.

"Mr. Right. You got anyone in mind?

"Well, kinda. It just seems that I always fall for guys who aren't interested."

_Like Jake, you mean. _ He sighed internally. So much for that.

"What about you? Have you seen anyone you might be interested in?"

"Well, yeah, but I think she's still hung up on G – someone else."

"Why don't you just ask her?"

"I thought we covered this. I turn into a babbling idiot."

"You want me to ask her for you?"

"No." his response was a little too quick. Heather grinned.

"Do I know her?"

"Yes..." His tone was wary. He could see the wheels turning as she tried to figure it out.

"That'll make it easier."

"And when I run into her the next time...?"

"Maybe she'll say hi. Maybe _you'll_ say hi. So who is she?"

"No."

"Interesting name."

"No, I'm not telling you." This only made Heather more determined. She grinned as she pressed on.

"Blonde? Brunette?

"_No_."

She turned to face him.

"Redhead?"

"Nu-uh."

"Tell me _something_. This is getting childish."

He stuck his tongue out at her accusation, and she had to laugh. She licked her finger in obvious preparation for a retaliatory wet willie, and he covered his ears. She moved towards him, one hand moving to uncover his ear. His other hand came up to intercept as he dodged – and fell backward off the rock, pulling her down on top of him. Heather somehow managed to land with her finger right next to his ear, and she pressed her advantage.

"_Who is she_?"

"Uh, um, I er, that is, she's, uh, I can't tell you, uh, ok?"

The long string of 'uhs' – and his highly improbable blush - finally penetrated her brain, and she sat up in shock.

"Really?"

He nodded miserably.

"And who the hell do I know whose name starts with G?"

"J." He corrected.

"J – Jake?"

Another nod.

"Well the answer is no, I'm not still hung up on him."

He sat up, turning away from her in the process, pointedly looking back down at the town. She stared at him as she processed this new information. He seemed embarrassed, though she had no idea why. She moved to sit next to him, though they both faced forward. She was still shaken by the thought that he obviously liked her a great deal. If she'd known…

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why didn't you just say so?"

"'Cause I'm chicken." Heather snorted. "Because I don't know what to say, or how to say it. I've never been good with words." He sounded so miserable. He was probably thinking he'd blown it. She took pity on him and abandoned words, putting her hand over his. His gaze fell to their hands and she saw the shock on his face. He blinked and raised his gaze to her face.

"Really?" he asked, echoing her incredulous words. She nodded – and then leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

He giggled.

She giggled.

He put an arm around her shoulders as they sat; she laid her head on his shoulder. As the sun fell in the sky, he felt his sullen expression disappear, destroyed by a huge, stupid-happy grin. He hadn't been this giddy since high school, when Crissy had said she would go out with him. Eventually, with manifest reluctance, Heather spoke.

"Karin said to be out of the woods before dark."

"Well, that's more of a guideline. Still, I suppose she has a point."

He rose, brushed himself off, and offered her a hand up. She took it and kept it as they walked slowly back towards camp. She, too, wore a ridiculous grin on her face in the gathering dusk. A part of her could not believe that she was holding his hand like this, and she looked down just to confirm the sensation of her hand holding his… and noticed something else.

"You too, huh?" she blurted.

He became aware that she'd spoken, but he'd missed it in his mental haze. So he followed her gaze to find – oh god, this _was_ high school all over again. He began to babble yet again, trying to cover himself – and then his aural processing capabilities finally caught up with him to tell him what she'd said.

"Wait, what?"

It was Heather's turn to blush, all the more spectacular on her pale complexion, but she didn't deny it. He tried to form words, but his vocal chords only produced noise.

"Oh, shut up."

"Uh, um – "

At which point Heather assisted him in shutting up, covering his mouth with hers. He responded, arms clamping down around her with nearly crushing force. When they finally broke the kiss, the look she gave him led him to make an executive decision. (not that he needed much leading) He shifted his grasp slightly, picked her up and stepped past the line of bushes next to the trail, looking for a suitable location.

One Captain Karin Dunne went into the woods. She'd told Heather to get out before dark, mainly because she didn't know if Heather had had any outdoor/wilderness training. But Beck was still out there, so hopefully she'd found him. She'd be fine if she was with him. Still, it was getting awfully late.

She heard a small noise just off the trail. Unholstering her weapon – the possibility of hostiles was remote, but better to be safe – then she recognized the location. It was one of several ostensibly private, secluded spots along the trail for what was politely termed 'R&R'. She holstered her gun, noting the two pairs of bare feet as confirmation of – _holy crap. _The tattoo on that foot belonged to the major. Against her better judgment, she went back for another look.

_Stir the pot, indeed. _She thought to herself, remembering her earlier thoughts. _More like put it on to boil. _She paused just to look at them. It was actually kinda sweet, the way they were curled up together under his jacket. And the look on their faces was just… happy. _Good. They deserve it_. _Now I need to get out of here before they wake up and see me._

Karin smiled all the way back to camp, but fought to wipe it off her face as she neared the tents. She damn sure wasn't going to tell anyone about the Major's new girlfriend, because she didn't want to explain what she'd seen. No, she was going to wait until they announced it themselves. She had no desire to be digging latrines for the next week.

As she arrived in camp, there was an unusual amount of activity. No, not amount – type. People were in groups, talking intently. She went to the nearest group.

"What's going on?"

"You haven't heard?"

"No." Accompanied by a look that clearly said 'why do you think I'm asking, idiot?'

"The major went for some R&R."

"What?"

"Johnson went up there with his girl, but the major was already there."

"Apparently he doesn't know the signal." Another soldier smirked.

"Anyway, they found him with someone."

"While they -?"

"Nah. After. Couldn't even tell who she was, 'cause she was covered and he couldn't see her face."

"Well." Was all Karin could think to say out loud. _Well, the cat's out of the bag now. At least it's not on my head._

"I'm glad," one of the soldiers, a woman this time, said. "He's been moping around way too long. Though I wonder who she is."

They became aware of a silence rippling through the camp, and followed the gazes to find Major Beck walking back into camp with Heather at his side. Their initially oblivious smiles gave way to confused looks as the camp went quiet around them, then exploded in whispers.

_Oh, hell. _Karin rushed over to meet the couple.

"Major."

"What is going on?"

"Sir, perhaps -?" she gestured to an empty tent. Once there, she continued. "Sir – you remember when we discussed R&R?" She saw the comprehension slowly dawn on his face. Heather just looked confused. Good. Hopefully Heather would never realize. "You were seen walking in the woods together, and people are speculating."

"Seen?" Heather asked.

"Speculating?" Beck asked.

"For the record, the consensus approves. If, of course, that were to be the case." She watched as they looked at each other, and the next words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. "Is it?"

"What?"

"Is it the case? You know, so I can go quell the rumors."

One more long look.

"Affirmative."

"Would you like a ride back to town, Heather?" I think I hear the truck starting up. It's the last one, though, so you need to hurry."

"Uh, yeah."

Karin waited as Beck gave Heather a chaste peck on the cheek and said goodnight.

"Good night, sir." She paused, gathering up her courage while making sure she was nearer to the door than he was. "And, sir – next time, cross the branches to form an X."

"_What_?" he turned pale as the implication hit him. "Oh god. What am I going to tell her when she hears what they saw?"

"Sir, it was after… you were well-covered at the time. They didn't even know who she was until you walked into camp together."

"Well, there's that at least."

"Hopefully they'll never tell it _to_ her." She watched as he became lost in thought. "Good night, sir. And congratulations."


End file.
